Lack of carries for RB McCoy absurd

This defies logic.

This defies reason.

This defies rational thought.

With 4:46 left in the third quarter of the Eagles game against the Cardinals Sunday, LeSean McCoy blasted 29 yards down the right flat for a first down at the Cards 22-yard-line.

The Eagles had a first-and-10 deep in Arizona territory, they were 22 yards from a 21-7 lead, and McCoy was just getting warmed up.

Time for the Eagles to put away the lowly Cards and keep their flickering playoff hopes alive.

McCoy at that point in the game had 12 carries for 80 yards, we were heading toward the fourth quarter, which he rules, and the Cards defense didnt want any part of him.

And they didnt get any part of him.

McCoy, who is averaging an NFL-best 7.1 yards per carry in the fourth quarter, didnt run the ball again on the Eagles next 10 plays and got only two attempts the rest of the game after his explosive 29-yard run.

And one of those two attempts came with Vince Young at quarterback after Michael Vick got banged up, with the Cards stacking the box, fully aware there was no way the Eagles were going to let Young actually throw the football.

Over the Eagles last 20 plays, McCoy got two carries. Two carries for an MVP candidate whos one of the most dangerous fourth-quarter runners in NFL history. Two carries for the only tailback in NFL history with four career fourth-quarter touchdown runs of 45 yards or more.

Not Barry Sanders. Not Gale Sayers. Not Jim Brown.

LeSean McCoy.

In a flash, the Cards had become the fifth team this year to overcome a fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Eagles, and all McCoy could do was stand around and watch.

Inexcusable. Infuriating. Incomprehensible.

But not surprising.

Weve seen Duce Staley ignored in crucial situations, and weve seen Correll Buckhalter and Brian Westbrook ignored in crucial situations. And now McCoy is getting the exact same treatment.

The difference is that at least back then, the Eagles usually had a big-time passing game with Donovan McNabb, so you could at least kind of understand what head coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator and play caller Marty Mornhinweg were thinking, even if it was frustrating to see terrific weapons gathering dust on the bench.

Now? Vick looks lost. Honestly, right now he looks worse than McNabb ever did while he was here. Jackson, the Eagles biggest receiving weapon, wasnt in the stadium Sunday. Jeremy Maclin was banged up, on and off the field. The Eagles had one weapon left and the Cards had no way to stop him.

And still, McCoy was criminally under-utilized for a second straight game (see blog post).

Lets see ... keep chucking the football 10 yards over Riley Coopers head or give it to McCoy and watch him take over the game.

Hmmmm. Tough call.

Consider how brilliant McCoy has been this year. He leads the NFL with 10 rushing touchdowns. Despite ranking sixth in carries, hes second in rushing yards, just 11 behind Matt Forte. His 5.5 average is just a fraction behind NFL leader Fred Jackson. Hes run for 57 first downs -- 17 more than anybody else in the league.

On 33 of his 151 carries this year -- 22 percent -- hes run for 10 yards or more.

And hes done all this without the luxury of getting to play against the Eagles defense.

McCoys career average is now up to 5.0 yards per carry, and only three tailbacks in NFL history with at least 500 carries have a higher average -- Bo Jackson, Jim Brown and Mercury Morris.

McCoys career rushing average is higher than 18 of the 21 running backs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

What has it earned him?

Two carries in the fourth quarter against Chicago and two carries in the fourth quarter against Arizona.

Both games were winnable. Both games Vick struggled. Both games the Eagles led in the fourth quarter. Both games McCoy had big numbers through three quarters.

And both games, McCoy was forced to watch like the rest of us, helpless as the Eagles gave away yet another fourth-quarter lead.

Its preposterous.

What makes all of this even more absurd is that it looked like Andy and Marty had finally come around on the importance of the running game when they gave McCoy 28 carries against the Redskins and 30 more against the Cowboys. Guess what? The Eagles controlled the clock, beat down both defenses, won both games and got themselves back to 3-4 with a chance to salvage something of this wretched season.

Since then? McCoy had 16 carries for 71 yards against the Bears and 14 for 81 against the Cards.

Loss. Loss.

Both games, the Eagles led in the fourth quarter. Both games, they allowed double-digit points in the fourth quarter. Both games Shady had just two carries in the final quarter, when hes averaged nearly six yards a pop in his career.

Season over.

The Eagles have run 33 fourth-quarter offensive plays the last two games, and four have been McCoy runs.

Four for 33.

If McCoy had gotten 25 carries against the Bears and 25 more against the Cards, the Eagles would be 5-4 right now and playing for a share of the NFC East lead Sunday night against the Giants at the Meadowlands.

Instead, theyre 3-6 and talking about what could have been.

Nobody can stop McCoy. Nobody can slow him down.

Nobody except his own head coach.

E-mail Reuben Frank at rfrank@comcastsportsnet.com